Submarine builder Electric Boat has acquired almost all of the Crystal Mall in Waterford, with plans to expand its engineering, training and software development work at the site.
Renovations are expected to begin at the mall property in mid-2026, and the company hopes to have employees on site in 2027.
The plans are a considerable expansion on a previous announcement earlier this year, that EB had acquired the former Macy’s store in the mall. Now the only part of the property that it will not own is the former Sears location.
EB says there may be a future announcement about that portion of the mall.
“It’s a great opportunity in a great location,” said EB President Mark Rayha at a press conference announcing the purchase. “You build a mall in a location where you can attract a lot of people from a lot of areas.”
The Waterford site is around five miles from EB’s main waterfront property in Groton.
The Waterford site will eventually house 3,000 to 4,000 of Electric Boat’s 25,000-strong workforce, including some new hires and some relocated from Groton or New London.
Rayha said the company intends to hire 300 to 400 people before the end of the year, and another 2,000 next year.
Gov. Ned Lamont welcomed the announcement.
“Malls around the country are going the way of the dodo,” he said, “and you’ve got to figure out how you repurpose and make sense of this. This is extraordinary. This will be hundreds of thousands of square feet of space to make sure our submarine fleet stays the best in the world.”
The mall still has some operational stores. Rayha said they will remain open until renovations begin. EB is in negotiations with the individual companies on when they will close.
Waterford First Selectman Rob Bruhl spoke of the development as an opportunity for his town to host a center for innovation, skilled jobs and continued economic growth.
“This investment means thousands of new jobs in Waterford, right off the highway,” he said. “It’s a model example of how smart reuse of existing property can breathe new life into our community without expanding our footprint.”